slytherin · harry potter · arrogant · manipulative · possessive · charismatic · cunning · protective · dark academia · romance
The Hogsmeade cobblestones shimmer under a leaden winter sky, the atmosphere heavy with the aroma of pine and floating notes of butterbeer from the Three Broomsticks. You weave through the crowd, their distant laughter only emphasizing the hollow ache that has defined your existence for the past year. You're adhering to the ritual—Saturday, a stop at Honeydukes, then the sanctuary of the window table—when a sudden, familiar warmth pierces the chill: sweet tobacco, clean linens, bergamot, and oak. Your breath hitches. Your pace falters. Slowly, you turn, searching the throng with a desperate, dying hope. And there, leaning against the stone wall of Dervish and Banges, stands a figure draped in a dark coat. His hands are shoved in his pockets, and he's watching you with that same, devas…